What I Like about NASH FM

I’m not talking about the radio station (which is New York’s newest Country station), I’m talking about the website.

Yes, I know this is an “opening act” site and not the “final” one. But in many ways this is a much better “final” site than whatever might be “final.”

Consider what it provides:

A clean, clear representation of the brand and its benefit

The opportunity to listen live one click away

An email entry form to find out more about the brand and, in the process, to gather a permission asset of fan emails

Key social media links

While I could nitpick some of these details, that’s not the point.

Here’s the point: What better purpose can there be for a digital platform than to introduce your brand, provide a way to enjoy it, invite consumers to join it, and invite them to share in the conversation about it?

every meeting i’ve ever been in about re-branding/launching a new station i always talk/beg about bringing in outside branding professionals. for tv, outdoor, web even on-air. and not just for a one-off consult. to do the actual work.

they cost a lot more. yes.

but just look at the difference. a cohesive brand essence on par with the major media our audience consumes.

instead we all too often let people with marginal graphic design skills and ZERO true branding experience/philosophy/vision let loose on our “brands” because – well – it’s cheaper.

all we ever shoot for is “looking” as good as other stations in the format.

for all the “talk” we do about “branding” – we often treat the art of “branding”our stations with near zero dignity or respect. it’s a task on a to-do list, anxiously waiting to be checked off as soon as possible.

kudos to the Nash launch.

I know it’s a national format – but it’s a great example of what’s possible when you’re willing to contract pros.

Yes! Love it. Clean. Attractive. Simple. I am so used to seeing station web sites that are cluttered, jammed with video, audio, blogs, bells, whistles. It is exhausting and certainly confusing. Yet the cookie cutter “radio site” is prevalent across the industry. Somebody must have said the key to a good site is to have it jammed with “stuff” cause that is what I see in 8 out of 10 cases. This one is a breath of fresh air.